



R E P O R T 



A 

si- ^5 



Committee on Lands 

TO THE TRUSTEES OF THE 

Ohio Agricultural and Mechanical College, 

RELATIVE TO THE 

SWAMP, CONGRESS, CANAL, AND OTHER UNSOLD 
LANDS OF THE STATE, 

WITH AN APPENDIX. 



Printed for the use of the Trustees and for the General Assembly. 



COLUMBUS; 

NEV1NS & MYERS, STATE PRINTERS. 

1873, 



REPORT 



Committee on Lands 



TO THE TRUSTEES OF THE 

Ohio Agricultural and Mechanical College, 

RELATIVE TO THE 

SWAMP, CONGRESS, CANAL, AND OTHER UNSOLD 
LANDS OF THE STATE, 

WITH AN APPENDIX. 



Printed for the use of the Trustees and for the General Assembly. 



COLUMBTJS: 

NEVINS & MYERS, STATE PRINTERS, 
1873. 



JUL 22 1908 

D< or a 



iV ! 



V v * 



\ 

i 



KEPORT OE COMMITTEE ON LANDS. 



d 



To the Board of Trustees of the Agricultural and Mechanical College : 

The undersigned, a majority of the Committee on Lands, charged with 
the duties of inquiring into the condition and quantity of certain lands in 
the State of Ohio, known as " Swamp Land," " Canal Land," and forfeited 
lands, with a view to procuring an appropriation of the same, or the pro- 
ceeds of the sales thereof, to the endowment fund of said College, now 

EEPOET: 

That the sources of information relative to said lands were to be found 
principally in the Land Department of the office of the Auditor of State, 
the United States Land Office at Chillicothe, and in the General Land 
Office at Washington. 

Tour Committee had not proceeded far in their inquiries when they 
discovered that special qualifications, wdiich they do not possess, such 
as an acquaintance with the land books in the various offices, was necessary 
to a proper discharge of the duties assigned them. 

They therefore availed themselves of the aid of Chas. J. Wetmore, Esq., 
who has had charge of the Land Department of the Auditor's office for many 
years past. His long experience, his entire familiarity with the technology 
of all the land departments, coupled with an acquaintance with the legis- 
lation, both State and Federal, in respect to said lands, have enabled him 
to render your Committee important service, which he has presented in 
the following statement of facts, correspondence, and presentation of 
statutes : 

To Messrs. J. M. Trimble, W. P. Noble and E. Leete, Committee on Lands in 
behalf of the Ohio Agricultural and Mechanical College, Columbus, 0. : 

Gentlemen : In response to the request of Mr. Leete, of your Com- 
mittee, I beg leave to submit the following statement respecting the 
Swamp, Congress, and Canal Lands of this State. 

Very respectfully, 

CHAS. J. WETMORE. 



STATEMENT. 



SWAMP LANDS. 



The first act of Congress relative to Swamp Lands in Ohio was entitled 
" An act to enable the State of Arkansas and other States to reclaim the 
Swamp Lands within their limits." Approved Sept. 28th, 1850. (See 
United States Stat, at Large, Yol. 9, p. 519.) Appendix iC JL." 

This act provides that " the whole of those swamp and overflowed lands, 
made unfit thereby for cultivation, remaining unsold at the date of the 
act, shall be and the same are hereby granted to the State," the proceeds 
to be applied " exclusively, as far as necessary," to reclaiming said lands, 
and the Secretary of the Interior is to make out lists and plats and trans- 
mit to the Governor. 

On the 21st day of Nov., 1850, the Commissioner of the General Land 
Office addressed a letter to the Governor, inclosing a copy of the instruc- 
tions " this day sent to the Land Officers of your State for the selection of 
swamp and overflowed lands to which the State will be entitled by the act 
of Sept. 28th, 1850." (See Letter and Instructions.) Appendix " J3." 

From a perusal of this letter and the instructions accompanying the 
same, it will be seen that all lands which, from being swampy or subject 
to overflow and unfit for cultivation, or which, though dry part of the 
year, are subject to inundation at the planting, growing or harvesting 
season, were clearly and unequivocally within the grant. The Field Notes 
of the surveys are the data upon which the lists are to be made out, pro- 
vided the State accepts them as a basis, and it does not appear that any 
action was at any time expected or required of the State authorities, but 
if they should furnish satisfactory evidence that any lands are of the 
character embraced by the grant, the Registers and Receivers are required 
to report them. When the swamp or overflowed lands are on the borders 
of a stream or lake, directions are given for ascertaining boundaries. The 
lands thus selected to be reserved from sale, etc., etc. 

On the 19th day of December, 1850, the Eegister of the U. S. Land 
Office, at Defiance, reported to the Commissioner of the General Land 
Office a list of Swamp Lands, embracing 32,438.15 acres, of which 25,640.71 
acres were approved on the 27th clay of September, 1852, and patented 
February 10th, 1853. These lands were embraced in "List No. 1." 

And were located as follows, viz. : 



5 

lu Auglaize county 1G0. acres. 

In Crawford « 225.5G " 

In Defiance " 2,720. » 

In Fulton '<■ 1G0. 

In Hardin •< 4,707.43 « 

In Holmes a * 40. " 

In Paulding " 640. " 

In Putnam " 1,760. " 

In Van Wert " 2,240. " 

In Williams " 545.86 » 

In Wood " 6.986.60 " 

In Wyandot " 560. <« 

In Ottawa and Sandusky counties 4,895.26 " 

* Total 25,640.71 " 

The remainder of the lands reported by the Eegister at Defiance, viz. : 
6,797.44 acres, were embraced in List No. 2, of selections rejected, for 
reasons following, viz. : 

320 acres, because previously sold. 
80 " " " 

80 " because granted as canal land. 
317.44 " because they were, by stipulation, to be sold for benefit of 

Indians. 
0,000 " "Deep marsh in disputed territory, north of old State line," 
" because not swamp, and nearly all sold." (See Letter of 
Eegister to Commissioner, Dec. 19, 1850, and of Commis- 
sioner to Governor, May 9, 1856.) Appendix " C" and " FS 



6,797.44 



These lists, with a diagram of the lands, were received by the Governor 
in October, 1852, and are now on file in the office of the Auditor of State, 
pursuant to resolution of the General Assembly, passed December 28th, 
1852. (O. Laws, Yol. 51, p. 547.) 

By resolution of the General Assembly, passed May 1, 1852, the Gover- 
nor was requested to procure patents for the Swamp Land selections. 
(O. Laws, Tol. 50, p. 44.) 



* Of this amount the State authorities have been advised that 160 acres had been sold 
by the Government before the patent was issued. 



6 

Governor Wood, in a message to the General Assembly, dated Decem- 
ber 2d, 1852, (see Leg. Doc., Yol. 17, Part L, page 3,) and also in a letter 
to tlie Commissioner of the General Land Office, of January 26th, 1853, 
referring to said lists and diagrams, says : " It struck me, from an inti- 
mate knowledge of the country embraced in the Defiance Land District, 
that the lands marked as Swamp Lands on the diagram were infinitely 
less than the Swamp Lands, in fact, which had been granted by Congress, 
and which the State of Ohio was entitled to under the grant." 

It does not appear that the Legislature took any action upon the sug- 
gestions of Governor Wood ; but on the 2d day of March, 1853, an act was 
passed, entitled "An act to provide for draining and reclaiming swamp 
and overflowed lands granted to the State of Ohio by act of Con- 
day of April, 1854, an act amending the 9th section of the act of March 
gress, approved September 2S, 1850 " ( 0. L. vol. 51, p. 357) ; and on the 25th 
2d, 1850, was also passed. (0. L. vol. 52, p. 51.) By these acts the lands 
were granted to the counties in which they were severally located, the 
proceeds of the sale to be used in draining the same ; and if there was 
any excess remaining after draining, said excess to be paid into the 
county treasury for the use of common schools. 

The Commissioner of the General Land Office (Butterfield), in his re- 
port to the Secretary of the Interior, December, 1850, says: " It was de- 
cided, with your approbation, to charge the Surveyors General of the 
several States in which their offices existed, in the first place, with making 
out lists of the lands granted to those States by that law, and when those 
offices were abolished (as in Ohio), to devolve that duty upon the land 
officers of the respective districts. Full instructions have been made out 
and transmitted for this purpose," etc., etc. The same officer, in his re- 
port in 1852, says : u In numerous instances it is found difficult accurately 
to detect from the plats and field notes of surveys the precise lands assign- 
able to the State under the grant, and those subject to periodical over- 
flow, so as to prevent their cultivation, when the same were surveyed in 
dry season, cannot be assigned without special examination in the field ; 
and the expense of making such examinations is set forth by the reports 
of some of the Surveyors General. In those States wherein the office of 
Surveyor General had been abolished, the duty of making the required 
selections was from necessity devolved upon the district land officers, who 
have, to a considerable extent, reported the selections which have been 
made." 

In a speech made by Hon. S. P. Chase in the Senate of the United 
States, April 14, 1852, on " the bill granting to the State of Ohio the un- 
sold lands remaining within that State," he said : " The principal object 
of the measure is to terminate Federal ownership in the State of Ohio. 



It grants to the State the unsold residue of the public lands within her 
limits, except that portion lying within the Virginia Military District. 

There has beeu granted for schools (including section 

16), colleges, etc 727,528 acres. 

For internal improvements 1,243,001 ' c 

For swamp lands 303,329 " 

In all. - • 2,273,858 " 

And there is remaining unsold .... 216,070 " " 

The figures were taken from a statement prepared for the use of Mr. 
Chase at the General Land Office, September 30th, 1851. 

On the 15th day of April, 1852, Mr. Chase's bill, entitled u An act to 
grant to the State of Ohio the unsold and unappropriated public lands 
remaining in that State," passed the United States Senate. In addition 
to the grant of the unsold lands, the bill provides for the transfer to the 
Governor of Ohio, or such person as he shall designate, all the land records 
at the Chillicothe Land Office. Appendix "D." 

The second section of the act of Congress passed March 2d, 1855, en- 
titled u An act for the relief of purchasers and locaters of swamp and 
overflowed lands" (U. S. Stat, at Large, vol. 10, p. 631), {Appendix "I?") 
provides that if the Government has sold any lands that were swamp 
lands within the meaning of the act of September 28th, 1850, the pur- 
chase money shall he paid the State; and if said lands have been entered 
by warrant or with scrip, then the State shall be authorized to locate a 
like amount upon any public lands subject to entry at one dollar and 
twenty-five cents per acre. 

On the 28th of April, 1856, Gov. Chase addressed a letter to Commis- 
sioner Thos. A. Hendricks (see Letter Booh, Governors Office, pp. 199 and 
200), calling his attention to the figures used by him in his speech in the 
Senate, April 14, 1852, and obtained from the Land Office, and desires 
him to explain the discrepancy between those figures and the list of selec- 
tions actually approved (i. e. "303,329 acres" and "25,640.71 acres.") 

On the 9th of May following, the Commissioner replied that the figures 
'* 303,329 acres were talcen from an estimate made by the Surveyor General, 
on the 8th day of October, *1847." (Appendix Ci F.") 

It appears from this letter, and from the letter of the Eegister at 

* Under the act of June 12, 1840, the plats and field notes of the United States Surveys, 
in this State, were to be deposited in the office of the Secretary of State, U. S. (Stat, at 
Large, Vol. 5, p. 384.) And by the act of the General Assembly of Ohio, passed February 
28, 1846, the Secretary of State was required to take charge of said plats, surveys, &c., 
which had been " delivered to the Governor by the Surveyor General at Detroit." 



Defiance, of December 19, 1850 (Appendix " 0"), referred to therein, that 
the Land Officers at Chillicothe and Defiance were not very zealous advo- 
cates of the interests of the State in the swamp land business. 

The act of Congress, entitled " An act to confirm to the several States 
the swamp and overflowed lands selected under the act of September 28, 
1850, and the act of the 2d of March, 1849," was approved March 3, 1857. 
( U. S. Stat, at Large, Vol. 11, p. 251. Appendix « #.") 

This act continues in force, the act of 1855 confirming all selections un- 
der the act of 1850, and requires patents to be issued. 

On the 7th of March following, the Commissioner (Appendix "IZ"j, 
writes to Gov. Chase, calling his attention thereto, and especially to the 
provisions respecting reimbursement of purchase money of any sales 
since the passage of the act of 1850, and an equivalent for entries with 
warrants or scrip ; and adds that "the lists necessary to enable the State 
to derive the benefits of the acts of 1855 and 1857, will be prepared and 
transmitted without delay." And through all the communications from 
the Land Office, the declaration or idea is prominent that the United 
States authorities will designate the lands enuring to the State. But the 
" lists " referred to, do not seem to have been furnished at this time, nor 
in fact at any time. The State authorities were meanwhile groping in 
the dark. 

Finally, on the 7 ill of August, 1857, Gov. Chase wrote again to the 
Commissioner, transmitting a list of swamp lands in Paulding county, 
attested by the County Surveyor and Ezra J. Smith, Esq., and says : " I 
find that a very large quantity granted to the State has never been certi- 
fied. Of this large quantity, the lands embraced in the lists forwarded, 
lie in Paulding county." (See Letter Book, Executive Office, p. 25. Appen- 
dix " I.") And this appears to have closed the swamp land business dur- 
ing his administration. There is no evidence filed of any reply to the 
above letter, nor of any further action, until May 21, 1860, when Gov. 
Dennison received from the Commissioner of the General Land Office, a 
letter enclosing a copy of the act of Congress, approved March 12, 1860, 
entitled " An act to extend the provisions of an ' act to enable the State 
of Arkansas and other States to reclaim the swamp lands within their 
limits,' to Minnesota and Oregon, and for other purposes," (See U. S. 
Slat, at Large, Vol. 12, p. 3; Appendix li K v ), the second section of which 
limits the time within which selections can be made to two years from 
the date of adjournment of the Legislature then in session. Gov. Denni- 
son took some steps with a view of getting action upon the subject, but 
the war commencing soon after, the matter was entirely lost sight of. 

In the course of this examination, I find among my private papers a 



9 

letter from the Commissioner of the General Laud Office, dated March 
25, 1872 {Appendix " L "), in reply to a letter which I had addressed to the 
Secretary of the Interior, in which he says, that " in 1857, another list, 
embracing 21,999.99 acres, was reported as swamp land, hut no action 
was taken thereon, because they were alternate sections within the five 
mile limits of the canal grant, it having beeu decided by the Secretary of 
the Interior by letter* dated November 20, 1855, that such sections did 
not enure to the State under the swamp grant." 

On the lGth day of November last, Hon. E. Leete, of your committee, and 
the writer, went to Chillicothe and called upon the Eegister andEeceiver 
at the land office in that place, with the hope of getting some information 
in regard to these lands, and also the unsold Congress lands of the State. 
We found those officers very obliging and desirous to aid us. Upon 
examining their books it appeared that on the 18th of August, 1857, some 
23,000 acres of land in Paulding county was "reserved from sale," as 
swamp land, and restored to sale by order of the Commissioner of the 
General Land Office, November 2, 1863, and that the said lands have all 
since been sold at $2.50 per acre, being alternate sections. Without doubt 
these are the selections embraced in the lists sent to the Commissioner by 
Governor Chase, August 7, 1S57, and rejected because they were within 
the five mile canal grant. 

In the foregoing statement reference is made to all the acts of Congress 
and of the General Assembly of Ohio, relative to swamp lands in this 
State, and also to all the official correspondence on the subject which 
could be found. From the several acts of Congress to which reference 
has been made, as well as from the correspondence and instructions of 
the Commissioner of the General Land Office, it will be seen that the 
responsibility of selecting these lands devolved upon the United States 
authorities. The State authorities were invited to assist, and could pro 
cure additions to the lists of such lands as were embraced by the terms 
of the grant, although not so indicated upon the plats and surveys. 

Without doubt the Surveyor General's estimate in 1847, (viz : 303,329 
acres.) was far below the actual area of the swamp lands then within the 
limits of the State, and infinitely less than the original quantity. Any 

* No such letter can now be found. 

Note. — With respect to the list, embracing 21,999.99 acres, attested by the surveyor 
of Paulding county and Ezra J. Smith, Esq., reported to the Commissioner of the General 
Land Office in 1857, and rejected "because they were alternate sections," it maybe said 
that it does not appear that the terms of the grant will admit of the exclusion of alter- 
nate sections, provided they are swamp within the meaning of the act of September 28, 
1850, which these lands undoubtedly were. 



one familiar with the lands in the northwestern portion of the State must 
be aware that a large portion of them were and are unfit for cultivation 
until thoroughly surface-drained ; that the ditch taxes in some of these 
counties have been excessively burdensome to the settler, and that the 
principal obstacle in the way of an early settlement of that section has 
been and is in the wet and swampy nature of the land. 

CONGRESS LANDS. 

The United States Land Office at Defiance was burned April 10, 1851, 
and with it all the records which had accumulated there. In 1855 this 
office was removed to Ohillicothe, and now at the office at the latter place 
are accumulated the records and papers of all the United States Land 
Offices which have existed in this State ; that is to say, the original 
records of all the sales and entries of Congress lands within this State, 
and the original papers relating thereto, excepting such as were destroyed 
at the burning of the office at Defiance, and these last probably 
embraced most of the sales and entries in the northwestern part of the 
State.* 

On visiting the Chillicothe office in November last, as stated, and 
examining the books, we could find nothing of practical value, excepting 
what has been stated in respect to the swamp land selections. The Eeg- 
ister, Mr. Franklin, said iu substance, that in consequence of the burning 
of the records at Defiance, the data with respect to vacant or unsold 
Congress lands, in that part of the State, was very imperfect and unsatis- 
factory. He was not aware that there were any unsold Congress lands 
in the State. Occasionally individuals came to his office desiring to enter 
lands which they supposed were vacant, but he could ascertain whether 
they were subject to sale only by correspondence with the General Land 
Office at Washington. There are, however, doubtless very many single 
tracts scattered through the northwestern counties of the State, perhaps 
known to be vacant, but for various reasons not applied for. On the lake 
shore, in Wood county, bordering upon townships 9 and 10, in range 9, 
Michigan M., and upon town 10, in range 10, Michigan M., there is what 
is designated upon the plats, an " impassable marsh covered with water,' 7 
of considerable extent, bounded in the waters of the lake by a " sandy 
ridge," and extending from the light-house at Cedar Point down nearly 



* Note. — These books and papers, in quantity sufficient to fill the shelves of the most 
spacious office in the State House, are deposited in a large rear room of the Court House 
building, aud in case of a destructive fire would inevitably be mostly destroyed. 



11 

to the old State boundary line. The plats and field notes define clearly 
the limits of the surveyed townships bordering thereon, and it is under- 
stood that this marsh, with the exception perhaps of the island at its 
northern extremity (Cedar Island), is not embraced in the United States 
surveys, and, that it should be granted to the State as swamp land, there 
is little doubt. It has been the subject of cautious inquiry for several 
years past, and is understood to be valuable for its sand, as a fishing 
ground, and perhaps for other purposes. 

This examination has led me to believe it unlikely that there are any 
large bodies of congress lands vacant or unsold. With a view of arriving 
at an approximation to the facts, I have prepared the following statement, 
selecting such counties only as have full original surveyed townships, and 
parts of full original surveyed townships of 23,040 acres each, ^hose 
actual area I could readily determine. The grand duplicate for 1872 
gives the whole number of acres, exclusive of towns and villages, taxed in 
each county : 

STATEMENT. 



Allen 

Defiance .- 
Hancock . 

Henry 

Paulding . 
Putnam .. 
Van Wert 
Seneca 



Totals 



Counties. 



Number 
of town- 
ships. 



Hi 

Hi 
14f 

11* 

11+ 
134 

11* 
15 



Entire area 

of county in 

acres. 



259,200 
264,960 
339,840 
268,800 
264,960 
307,200 
259,200 
345,600 



2,309,760 



Acres per 

duplicate. 

of 1872. 



255,930 
257,492 
336,922 
263,060 

257,086 
301,287 
258,256 
345,158 



2,275,191 



Acres 
vacant. 



3,270 
7,468 
2,918 
5,740 
7,874 
5,913 
944 
442 

34,569 



There are probably some unsold school lands in the above named coun- 
ties. It is also probable that some lands are twice charged on the dupli- 
cate, and others which are unsold have doubtless been placed upon the 
duplicate without authority. There are no complete tract books in the 
office of the Auditor of State, none at all at Chillicothe, and consequently 
the tract books of the General Land Office at Washington afford the only 
means of determining, with any degree of certainty, whether there are 
any unsold Congress lands in this State, and if so, their location. 



CANAL LANDS. 



Under this head are classed those lands granted by Congress to the 
State to aid in the construction of the canals authorized by law. The 



12 

destruction of the U. S. Land Office at Defiance involved also the 
destruction of all the records and papers pertaining to the State Land 
Office for the sale of canal lands at that place, and the loss of these 
records leaves the State authorities in the same uncertainty in regard to 
vacant canal lands that is found to exist at the Ohillicothe office in regard 
to vacant Congress lands. The books and papers of the Defiance State 
Land Office were removed to Columbus in 1858, and the duties of the 
Land Agent devolved upon the Auditor of State. (S. & C, p. 194.) It 
is supposed that the canal lands are all sold — that is, with the exception 
of some islands in the Miami and Maumee rivers, there are none known 
to be vacant — and yet occasionally vacant canal lands are found and 
entered at this office under the laws in force, at prices varying from 31J 
cents to $2 per acre. I have stated that the Register at Chillicothe was 
not aware that there were any unsold Congress lands within the State, 
and that there were no canal lands known by the State authorities to be 
vacant. Undoubtedly, however, there are a considerable number of 
tracts scattered through the north-western part of the State, which on 
account of the burning of the land office at Defiance have been lost from 
th6 books, but which will ultimately be brought to light ; and i^ the land 
records of the State were all centered in one office, and the residue of the 
public lands brought under one ownership, the probability is that many 
of these tracts would be applied for without delay — many particular 
tracts being doubtless known to persons who are unwilling to encounter 
the delays and hindrances, the expense and the risk of loss resulting 
from the necessity of seeking information relative to them through three 
offices, neither having complete data to act upon, and located in cities 
widely asunder. 

FORFEITED LANDS. 

The lands thus called, about which your committee make inquiry, are 
those canal lands which have been sold at reduced price for actual settle- 
ment, and for which, in consequence of failure to make the required im- 
provement or settlement, purchasers have been unable to procure deeds. 
The residue of these lands were sold by Auditor Godman, Dec. 21, 1871, 
to Jas. Webster, Esq., of Yan Wert county. Possibly a few pieces were 
overlooked. It may be proper to remark in this place that nearly all the 
sales of canal land since 1847 were made under the several improvement 
acts ; and it is probably safe to say that in nine cases out of ten no 
improvement was made, and in very many cases the land remains unim- 
proved to this day. Until the office was removed to Columbus, in 1858, 
deeds were procured for such lands upon affidavits which were a complete 



13 

evasion of the law, as can be shown from the affidavits on file in the 
State Auditor's office. Some of these lands might probably be reclaimed 
by the State. 

LANDS BELONGING TO THE PUBLIC WORKS. 

Under this head are embraced such lands and town lots as were 
donated to the State by individuals in order to secure such location of 
the line of the canals as would most conduce to their interests. (See 
Senate Journal, 1827-8, page 246 et seq.) It is probable that some of the 
lands and lots thus conveyed are unsold and lost sight of by the lapse of 
time. 

Also, the lands and lots which the Canal Commissioners in construct- 
ing reservoirs and for other purposes, have found it necessary to condemn 
and purchase. Iu many of the purchases thus made, (as at the reser- 
voirs,) the Commissioners were obliged to purchase in quantity in excess 
of their wants, and the surplus remains undisposed of. Of the latter 
class, were village lots in Akron and Dresden, which have probably 
all been sold ; city property in Cleveland, some of which, perhaps all, 
has been sold ; thirty-two acres of land four miles south of the city of 
Columbus, and thirty-two and one-half acres of land in Coshocton county, 
and other tracts in various parts of the State on the line of the canals, 
which have not been sold. 

Eespectfully submitted, 

CHAS. J. WETMORE. 

Your committee are deeply impressed with the conviction that the 
endowment fund of said College should be increased to an amount that 
will produce an income of at least $100,000 a year, in order to found and 
support such an institution at the capital of our State as will meet the 
requirements of the present advanced state of knowledge, and attract to 
it for instruction the thousands of talented young men of Ohio, now 
availing themselves of the superior facilities for instruction furnished in 
other States. 

The impoverishment of our soil by tillage, demands improved methods 
of culture. 

The iron and coal deposits within our borders, ampler than those of 
Great Britain, require development. 

The alarming increase of insanity, for the treatment and cure of which 
the State is making liberal expenditures, demands the most thorough 
investigation of its causes and methods of treatment. 

It is not claimed or pretended that there is any institution of learning 



14 

in this State, where the objects contemplated by the laws creating this 
College are efficiently taught. 

Such, for example, as metallurgy, civil engineering, mining engineering, 
which includes the survey, ventillation and care of the mines, chemistry 
and its application to agriculture, and the mechanic arts. 

The present and the future prosperity of our people rest upon agricul- 
ture, and the development of the coal and iron mines. 

There is no assignable limit to the wealth which may be created and the 
population which may be sustained by the new industries that the iron 
and coal found within our borders will call into existence, when placed 
under the direction of such scientific methods as are now employed in the 
working of metals in some parts of Europe, and in some places in the 
United States. 

The advancement of these great interests are among the leading objects 
of this College, as will appear from the legislation, both State and Federal 
concerning it, as well as from the course of instruction prescribed by the 
Board of Trustees. 

We are of opinion that with the aid of friendly legislation, on the part 
of this State and the United States, this College may be so endowed with- 
out any demand upon the tax-payers of the State, as that it shall in the 
commencement of its career rank with the most vigorous Universities in 
the United States. 

A thoroughly furnished University, in which every branch of useful 
knowledge shall be taught, by methods the most exhaustive, will prove 
in Ohio to be, what it has been in England, and in some of the States of 
this Union, the main element in State and national strength. 

The laws and statement of facts herewith presented, indicate the fol- 
lowing resources which may be made available asan endowment fund, to 
be placed in the State treasury as a part of the irreducible debt : 

1st. The proceeds of the sales of the Swamp Lands, selected for this 
State, now in the United States treasury. 

2d. The remainder of the unsold swamp and other lands of the United 
States in this State. 

3d. The unsold State lands, granted by Congress for canal purposes, 
and surplus lands purchased by the State for the use of the canals. 

4th. The claim of this State upon the United States, known as the 
"Two per cent, claims," for the payment of which a bill has lately passed 
the United States House of Eepresentatives. In case said bill shall 
become a law, it will perhaps yield $375,000 to $400,00, to the State 
treasury. 

The amount of the proceeds of the sales of swamp land is not yet 



15 

ascertained ; it is probably not less than $250,000. It will bo seen by 
reference to appendix, (page 23,) that the second section of the act of 
Congress of March 2d, 1855, that the moneys arising from said sales 
belong to this State, and should have been placed in the State treasury 
years ago. Said act is in force, and not repealed. 

From the foregoing data, it is apparent that with proper legislation this 
institution can be amply endowed without any call upon the tax-payers. 

It is conceded on every hand that such an institution, as that described 
in the act of Congress, creating the fund now in the State treasury, is a 
necessary supplement to the present educational system of the State in 
order to promote the " liberal and practical education of the industrial 
classes." 

Had the General Assembly in 1883 exercised the same prudence and 
foresight in disposing of the land-scrip granted to this State for the 
founding of said College, which was practiced by the States of New York, 
Massachusetts, Kansas and some others, our fund would at this time have 
amounted to at least $1,000,000, instead of $186,810 62, as shown by the 
Auditor's report. 

Your committee could not do less than to present the foregoing facts 
and considerations to this Board, with a view that it will take such action 
as will bring the several matters, herein contained, before the General 
Assembly in the confident belief that the members of that body will adopt 
the legislation requisite to place said College on a basis equal to that of 
the best University in the country. Anything short of this would be 
unworthy of the place which Ohio holds as the foremost State of the 
Mississippi Valley, and as a member of the Federal Union. 

Ealph Leete, 
W. P. Noble. 

Columbus, January 3, 1873. 

The foregoing report, on motion of Judge Jones, was adopted, and 
ordered to be printed. 

J. Sullivant, 

Secretary. 



APPENDIX. 



A." 



SWAMP LANDS. 



[U. S. Stat, at Large, rol. 9, p. 519.] 

Am Act to enable the State of Arkansas and other States to reclaim the 
" swamp lands " within their limits. 

Section 1. Be it enacted by the Senate and Souse of Rep- 
resentatives in Congress assembled, That to enable the State of 
Arkansas to construct the necessary levee and drains to re- 
claim the swamp and overflowed land therein, the whole of 
those swamp and overflowed lands, made unfit thereby for 
cultivation, which shall remain unsold at the passage of this 
act, shall be, and the same are hereby granted to said State. 

Sec. 2. And be it further enacted, That it shall be the duty 
of the Secretary of the Interior, as soon as may be practica- 
ble after the passage of this act, to make out an accurate list 
and plats of the lands described as aforesaid, and transmit 
the same to the Governor of Arkansas, and at the request of 
said Governor, cause a patent to be issued to the State there- 
for ; and on that patent, the fee simple to said lands shall 
vest in the said State of Arkansas, subject to the disposal of 
the Legislature thereof: Provided, hoicever, that the pro- 
ceeds of said lands whether from sale or by direct appropria- 
tion in kind, shall be applied exclusively as far as necessary 
to the purpose of reclaiming said lands by means of the 
levees and drains aforesaid. 

Sec. 3. And be it further enacted, That in making out a 
list and plats of the lands aforesaid, all legal subdivisions 
the greater part of which is " wet and unfit for cultivation," 
shall be included in said list and plats ; but when the greater 
part of a subdivision is not of that character, the whole of 
it shall be excluded therefrom. 
2 — Com. on Lands. 



Swamp land un- 
fit for cultiva- 
tion granted to 
Arkansas. 



Secretary of In- 
terior to make 
out lists and 
plats of said 
lands, and when 
requested, to 
grant a patent 
vesting the 
same in the 
State of Arkan- 
sas. 



Proviso. 



When the 
greater part of 
a subdivision - 
is unfit for cul- 
tivation, it shall 
he included in 
said plats ; if 
the greater part 
he not of that 
character, it 
shall be ex- 
cluded. 



18 



Provisions of 
this act extend- 
ed to other 
States possess- 
ing such lands. 



Sec. 4. And be it further enacted, tliat the provisions of 
this act "be extended to and their benefits be conferred upon, 
each of the other States of the Union in which such swamp 
and overflowed lands, known and designated as aforesaid, 
may be situated. 

Approved Sept. 28, 1850.. 



B." 



General Land Office, Mo v. 21, 1850. 

Sir : I have the honor to enclose you a copy of the in- 
structions this day sent to the land officers of your State, for 
the selection of swamp and overflowed lands, to which the 
State will be entitled by the act of September 28, 1850. 

You will perceive by these instructions the land officers 
are authorized to receive such reliable evidence of the char- 
acter of any of these lands as may be presented by the au- 
thorities of the State ; and as many of the lands were prob- 
ably surveyed at dry seasons, and hence are not represented 
by the descriptive notes or plats as being of that character, 
I have supposed it to be a matter of sufficient importance to 
induce you to call upon the county surveyors, or other re- 
spectable persons of your State, for a statement, under oath, 
of the swamp or overflowed lands in their respective coun- 
ties. 

Such testimony you perceive will be regarded as establish- 
ing the facts in the case, and on receipt of the reports of the 
land officers, lists of the lands will be prepared as required 
by the act, submitted for the Secretary of the Interior and 
plats and patents for the lands thus approved, will be pre- 
pared and forwarded to you. 

(Signed) J. BUTTEBFIELD, Comr. 

His Excellency the Governor of Ohio. 



General Land Office, 
November 21, 1850. 

Sir : By the act of Congress entitled " an act to enable 
the State of Arkansas and other States, to reclaim the 
' Swamp lands' within their limits," approved September 28 } 
1850, it is directed " That to enable the State of Arkansas, 



19 

to construct the necessary levees and drains to reclaim the 
swamp and overflowed lands therein, the whole of those 
swamp and overflowed lands made thereby unfit for cultiva- 
tion, which shall remain unsold at the passage of this act, 
shall be and the same are hereby granted to said State.'" 

1st. By the 4th section of this act, it is directed that the 
provisions of it shall be extended to and their benefits be 
conferred upon each of the other States of the Union, in 
which such swamp and overflowed lands may be situated. 

2d. And " that in making out a list and plats of the lands 
aforesaid, all legal sub-divisions, the greater part of which is 
' wet and unfit for cultivation, 7 shall be included in said list 
and plats ; but when the greater part of a sub-division is not 
of that character, the whole of it shall be excluded there- 
from.' 1 

This act clearly and unequivocally grants to the several 
States those lands which from being swampy or subject to 
overflow, are unfit for cultivation. In this class is included 
also all lands which, though dry part of the year, are sub- 
ject to inundation at the planting, growing or harvesting 
season, so as to destroy the crop, and, therefore, are unfit for 
cultivation taking the average of the seasons, for a reasona- 
ble number of years, as the rule of determination. 

You will please make out a list of all the lands thus granted 
to the State, designating those which have been sold or other- 
wise disposed of since the passage of the law, and the price 
paid for them when purchased. 

The only reliable data in your possession from which these 
lists can be made out, are the field or descriptive notes ot 
the surveys on file in your office ; and if the authorities of the 
State are willing to adopt these as the basis of those lists, 
you will so regard them. If not, and those authorities fur- 
nish you satisfactory evidence that any lands are of the char- 
acter embraced by the grant, you will so report them. 

The following general principles will govern you in making 
up these lists, to wit : 

Where the field notes are the basis and the intersections of 
the lines of swamp or overflow with those of the public sur- 
veys alone are given, those intersections may be connected 
by straight lines, and all legal sub-divisions, the greater part 
of which are shown by these lines to be within the swamp or 
overflow, will be certified to the State, the balance will re- 
main the property of the Government. 

Where the State authorities may conclude to have the 



20 

surveys made to determine the boundaries of the swamp or 
overflowed lands, those boundaries alone should be surveyed, 
taking connections with the nearest section or township 
corners ; or 

Where the swamp or overflowed lands are on the borders 
of a stream or lake, the stream or lake could be meandered 
and ordinates surveyed at suitable intervals, from the borders 
of the stream or lake to the margin of the swamp or over- 
flowed lands, and by connecting the ends of those ordinates, 
next to that margin by straight lines, the boundaries of the 
swamp or overflowed lands can be ascertained with sufficient 
accuracy. In no case, however, should any such boundaries 
or ordinates be marked in the field, as they may produce 
difficulty in determining the lines and corners of the public 
surveys hereafter and thus lead to litigation. The selections 
in all these cases will be made as before directed. Where 
satisfactory evidence is produced, that the whole of a town- 
ship, or of any particular and specified part of a township, 
or the whole of a tract of country bounded by specified sur- 
veyed or natural boundaries, is of the character embraced by 
the grant, you will so report it. The adjacent sub-divisions, 
however, to be subject to the regulations above given ; and 
in every case under each rule or principle herein prescribed 
forty acre lots or quarter quarter sections will be regarded as 
the legal sub-divisions contemplated by the law. 

The affidavits of the county surveyors and other respecta- 
ble persons that they understand and have examined the 
lines, and that the lands bounded by lines thus examined 
and particularly designated in the affidavit, are of the char- 
acter embraced by the law, should be sufficient. 

The line or boundary of the overflow, that renders the land 
unfit for regular cultivation may be adopted as that which 
regulates the grant. 

You will make out lists of these lands as early as practica- 
ble, according to the following form, one copy of which you 
will transmit to the land officers and another to this office. 
The lands selected should be reserved from sale, and after 
those selections are approved by the Secretary of the Interior, 
the Eegister should enter all the lands so selected in his 
tract books as " granted to the State by act of 28th Septem- 
ber, 1850, being swamp or overflowed lands," and on the 
plats enter on each tract " State act 28th September, 1850." 
Copies of the approved lists will be sent to the Eegisters for 



21 

this purpose. Your early attention is requested in this mat- 
ter that the grant may ho disposed of as speedily as possible. 
Very respectfully, 
Your obedient servant, 
(Signed) J. BUTTERFIELD, 

Commissioner. 



0." 



Register's Office, Defiance, Ohio, 
December 19, 1850. 

Sir : In conformity with the instructions contained in your 
circular of November 21st, ult.,Ihave made out and herewith 
transmit a list of the swamp lands in this district so far as I 
could do so from the data to which you refer me in said circular. 
I am not confident that I have not omitted land that might 
be termed swampy ; but I am confident that the list embraces 
land that by simply clearing would become arable land, much 
land that the surveyor terms swampy in his descriptive notes, 
is embraced in the finest farms in this section of the country. 
The plats in this office seldom delineate a swamp when the 
descriptive notes say swampy — consequently I have been 
obliged to rely somewhat on my own personal knowledge of the 
country, obtained from observation and inquiry. In the last 
clause of the circular you pleased to say, "one copy of which 
you will transmit to the Land Office, and another to this (your) 
office." I presume it means that I shall retain one copy and 
transmit another to your office. 

[Signed.] ABNER ROOT, 

Register. 

Hon. John Bittterfield, Commissioner of General Land 
Office, Washington City. 



An Act to grant to the State of Ohio the unsold and unappropriated 
public lands remaining in that State. 

Be it enacted, &c, That all the public lands of the United 
States lying within the State of Ohio, which shall remain un- 
sold and unappropriated, from and after the 31st day of July, 



22 

1852 ? shall be and the same are hereby granted to said State 
to be disposed of as the Legislature thereof shall direct : 
Provided, however, that this grant shall not in any way affect 
any right of pre-emption or other right of any individual in 
or to any portion of said land, nor shall it be construed or 
regarded as including any land within the Yirginia Military 
District in that State; and provided also, that the lands with- 
in the Indian Beserves, the proceeds of which are by treaty 
stipulations required to be paid in part to certain Indians or 
Indian tribes, shall not be regarded as included in said grant, 
until after the State of Ohio shall have paid to the United 
States, for the use and benefit of said Indians or Indian 
tribes according to such treaties, fifty -five cents per acre, for 
each acre remaining unsold in said reserves. 

Sec. 2. And be it furtlier enacted, That immediately after 
the passage of this act, the Commissioner of the General 
Land Office, shall proceed to close the current land business 
in said State, and by or before the 31st of October, 1852, shall 
transfer to the Governor of the State of Ohio, or such person 
as he shall designate for that purpose, all the archives of 
every kind relating to lands within the State of Ohio, 
now in the District Land Office in that State except the 
applications for purchase, which shall be tranferred to the 
General Land Office. And all the lands now belonging to the 
Chillicothe District which lie within the State of Indiana, 
shall be attached to, and subject to sale at the Jefferson ville 
District of that State, and the archives relating to those 
lands, shall be turned over to the land officers of that 
district. 

Sec. 3. And be it further enacted, That the lands granted 
by this act, shall remain charged with all the liabilities and 
equities to which they are now subject, and the Legislature 
of said State shall make all necessary arrangements for dis- 
charging those liabilities and satisfying those equities. 

Passed in Senate, April 15, 1852. 



March 2d, 1865? 



"E." 

SWAMP LANDS. 

[U. S. Stat, at Large Vol. 10, p. 634.] 

An act for the relief of purchasers and lo waters of swamp and overflowed 

land. 

Be it enacted, &c, That the President of the United States 
cause patent to be issued, as soon as practicable, to the pur- 



23 



chaser or purchasers, locator or locators, who have made 
entries of the public lauds, claimed as swamp lauds, either with 
cash or with laud warrants, or with scrip, prior to the issue of 
patents to the State or States, as provided for by the 2d sec- 
tion of the act approved September 28, 1850, entitled u an 
act to enable the State of Arkansas and other States to 
reclaim the [swamp lands within their limits," any decision 
of the Secretary of Interior or other officer of the govern- 
ment to the contrary notwithstanding : Provided, that in 
all cases where any State, through its constituted authori- 
ties, may have sold or disposed of any tract or tracts of said 
land to any individual or individuals prior to the entry, sale 
or location of the same, under the pre-emption or other laws 
of the United States, no patent shall be issued by the Presi- 
dent for such tract or tracts of land, until such State, through 
its constituted authorities, shall release its claim thereto, in 
such form as shall be prescribed by the Secretary of the In- 
terior. And provided further, that if such State shall not 
within ninety days from the passage of this act, through its 
constituted authorities, return to the General Land Office, a list 
of all the lands sold as aforesaid, together with the dates of 
such sale, and the names of purchasers, the patents shall be 
issued immediately thereafter, as directed in the foregoing 
section. 

Sec. 2. And oe it further enacted, That upon due proof 
by the authorized agent of the State or States, before the 
Commissioner of the General Land Office, that any of the 
lands purchased were swamp lands within the true intent 
and meaning of the act aforesaid, the purchase money shall 
be paid over to the said State or States ; and when the lands 
have been located by warrant or scrip, the said State or 
States, shall be authorized to locate a quantity of like 
amount, upon any of the public lands subject £o entry at 
one dollar and a quarter per acre, or less, and patents shall 
issue therefor, upon the terms and conditions enumerated in 
the act aforesaid : Provided, however, that the said decisions 
of the Commissioner of the General Land Office shall be 
approved by the Secretary of the Interior. 

Approved March 2d, 1855. 



Patents to issue 
for swamp land 

In )>mrli:isiT;'. 
anil locators 
pi-ior to Issuing 
of patents to 
the Statu. 

ISr.Oeli. 84 



Provisions foi' 
the case of a 
sale by a Stato 
prior to its ob- 
taining a 
patent. 



List of such 
sale to be re- 
turned. 



Indemnity to 
the States when 
they lose 
swamp lands 
under this act. 



24 



"IF." 

General Land Office, 
May 9, 1856. 

Sir : I have the honor to acknowledge the receipt of your 
letter of the 28th nit., calling my attention to a statement 
heretofore furnished you, relative to swamp and overflowed 
lands in Ohio, and asking an explanation of the discrepany 
between said statement and the list of approved selections. 

The statement to which you refer, and which was appended 
to your speech made on the 14th of April, 1852, in the Senate 
of the United States, allotted to the State of Ohio, as the 
estimated amount of land enuring to her under the swamp 
land grant, 303,329 acres. In a letter to you, dated the 20th 
of May, 1852, 1 find it stated that the number of acres of 
swamp lands in Ohio, as shown in the report — meaning the 
statement just mentioned — was taken from an estimate made 
by the Surveyor General on the 8th day of October, 1847: 
that much of the land reported by the Surveyor General had 
been sold, but how much could not then be determined ; that 
the land officers had been called upon, by a circular dated 
November 21, 1850, to report lists of the swamp lands in 
their districts ; but as only partial returns had been made, 
you could not be advised of the exact amount to which the 
State would ultimately acquire title. In December, 1850, the 
Eegister at Defiance reported a list of swamp lands, embrac- 
ing 32,438.15 acres, of "which 25,640.71 acres were approved 
September 27, 1852, and patented February 19, 1853 ; the 
remaining 6,797.44 acres were rejected September 29, 1852, 
for the reasons stated in the margin of said list, a copy of 
which was sent to the then Governor on the 5th day of 
October of that year. You state the amount of approved 
land to be 25,720.71 acres. 

You will observe that the E. half of 1ST. E. quarter of sec- 
tion 23, T. 2, E. 4, was erased from the list on the 10th day 
of January, 1853, reducing the total to the amount above 
stated. 

In his letter, dated May 1, 1852, the Eegister of the Land 
Office at Chillicothe, at that time the only other existing 
office in the State, advised this office that his plats and field 
notes did not furnish any reliable data on which to base 
selections, and that as the instructions contemplated some 



25 

action by the State authorities, be could only look to them 
to select and report such lands as properly enured to tho 
State. No action appears to have been taken by those 
authorities, and the swamp land business so far as concerns 
tho State of Ohio, has been long looked upon as concluded. 
This is the only explanation I can give of the discropany to 
which you refer. 

In your letter now before me, you state that you have been 
advised " that there still exists a large body of swamp land 
in the northwestern part of the State which has never been 
included in any cession made to the State, and that Congress 
has made provision by law for correcting errors in the 
selections heretofore made, of which provision the State 
must avail herself, within a limited period ; n wherefore you ask 
such references to the statutes, and such statements as will 
enable you to assert and protect the interests of the State. 

In reply to this, I would remark that the law of 28th Sep- 
tember, 1850, prescribed no time within which the swamp 
selections were to be made, neither has any limit been 
designated by this office nor by subsequent legislation of 
Congress. Hence, if there be any public lands of the United 
States in the State of Ohio remaining vacant, which were 
swamp and overflowed at the time of the passage of the law 
of September 28, 1850, they are properly the subject of 
selection. 

(Signed) THOS. A. HENDBICKS, 

Commissioner. 
To Sis Excellency S. P. Chase, Governor of Ohio. 



" G." 
SWAMP LAND. 

[XL S. Stat, at Large, vol. 11, p. 251.] 
An Act to confirm to the several States the swamp and overflowed lands ^^^ 3 18g7 
selected under the act of September 28th, 1850, and the act of the 2d 
March, 1849. 

Be it enacted, &c, That the selection of swamp and over- _ , . 

' ' r Selections of 

flowed lands granted to the several States by the act of Con- swamp and 

° " overflowed 

gress approved September 28, 1850, entitled "An act to enable \^& confirmed. 

a *- L L ' ' 1850, ch. 84, vol 

the State of Arkansas and other States to reclaim the swamp 9, p. 519. 
lands within their limits," and the act of 2d March, 1849,* 

* Act of 1849 relates solely to State of Louisiana. 



I 



26 

1849, ch. 87, vol. entitled "An act to aid. the State of Louisiana in draining 

9, p. 352. ° 

the swamp lands therein," heretofore made and reported to 
the Commissioner of the General Land Office, so far as the 
same shall remain vacant and unappropriated, and not inter- 
fered with by an actual settlement under any existing law of 
the United States, be and the same are hereby confirmed, 
and shall be approved and patented to the several States in 
conformity with the provisions of the act aforesaid, as soon 
as may be practicable after the passage of this law : Provided, 
hoioever, that nothing in this act contained shall interfere 
with the provisions of the act of Congress entitled "An act 
for the relief of purchasers and locators of swamp and over- 
Act of 1855, ch. flowed lands," approved March 2d, 1855, which shall be and 
infor^sSd is hereby continued in force, and extended to all entries and 

10, p n 634.' locations of land claimed as swamp lands made since its 

passage. 
Approved March 3, 1857. 



General Land Office, 
March 7, 1857. 

His Excellency S. P. Chase, Governor of Ohio : 

Sir : By an act passed on the 3d of March, 1857, Congress 
has confirmed the selections of swamp and overflowed lands 
granted to the several States by the act of Congress, approved 
September 28, 1850, " heretofore made and reported " to this 
office, and " so far as the same shall remain vacant and un- 
appropriated, and not interfered with by an actual settlement 
under any existing law of the United States," it is required 
that the same shall be approved and patented as soon as 
practicable. The same law continues in force, the act of 2d 
March, 1855, and extends its provisions to .all entries and 
locations of lands claimed as swamp lands made since its 
passage. 

By this law all of the contested cases remaining unad- 
justed are at an end, and we are precluded from entertaining 
further objections against the approval of any lands hereto, 
fore selected and reported under the law. The States are en- 
titled to all of their selections remaining vacant and unap- 
propriated, and not interfered with by any actual settlement, 
also to the purchase money in cases of cash entry made since 



27 

the passage of the act of 1850, and an equivalent in lands 
for the tracts located with Military Bounty Land Warrants 
or scrip. Every effort will be made to promote the speedy 
adjustment of the swamp grant in conformity with this re- 
cent legislation, and the selection in each State will be acted 
upon in the order of their receipt at this office. The lists 
necessary to enable the States to derive the benefits of the 
acts of 2d March, 1855, and 3d of March, 1857, will be pre- 
pared and transmitted without delay. 

As the act of 1857 continues in force, the prior law of 
2d March, 1855, the provisions of the latter regarding the 
issue of patents to the purchasers, &c, will be considered as 
binding, and the same will be withheld in cases of prior sale 
by the State, until the execution of the release therein men- 
tioned. It will be necessary, therefore, that we should be 
advised of all sales of swamp lands made by the State since 
the passage of said act of 1855, which report should be made 
within ninety^days from the date of the law of 1857, in order 
that we may be enabled properly to discriminate. The nec- 
essary information relative to the form of the report, &c, 
will be found in the letter from this office of March 9, 1855, 
and it is respectfully suggested that you give the earliest pos- 
sible attention to the matter. 

[Signed.] THOS. A. HENDEIOKS, 

Commissioner. 



"I." 



Executive Office, 

Columbus, August 7, 1857. 
Sir: I inclose to you a list of swamp and overflowed lands 
in Paulding county, in this State, attested by the affida- 
vits of Henry S. Brown, Esq., surveyor of the county, and 
Ezra J. Smith, Esq., which, I trust, will be deemed sufficient 
to warrant you in certifying these lands to the State, under 
the act of September 28, 1850. In a former letter, I advised 
you that I had reason to believe that the quantity of swamp 
lands certified to this State, was far less than the quantity 
actually granted by the act of 1850, and referred you to a 
statement prepared at the Land Office confirming this view, 



28 



In reply, you advised me that the selections were not limited 
in time, I have, therefore, taken steps to ascertain whether or 
not I am correct in my supposition, and I find that a very large 
quantity granted to the State has never been certified. Of this 
large quantity, the lands embraced in the lists forwarded, lie 
in Paulding county. I shall feel very much indebted to you, 
should you find that there are defects in the proceedings I 
have adopted, if you will send me such documents and in- 
structions as will enable me to have this matter properly and 
finally adjusted between the State and the General Govern- 
ment. 

[Signed.] S. P. CHASE. 

To Commissioner of General Land Office. 



Provisions of 
act of 1850 
(ch. 84, vol. 9, 
p. 519) extended 
to Minnesota 
and Oregon. 

Proviso. 



Selections un- 
der said act and 
the act of 1849, 
ch. 87, vol. 9, p. 
352, when to be 
made. 



[IT. S. Stat, at Large, vol. 12, page 3.] 

An Act to extend the provisions of " an act to enable the State of Arkan- 
sas and other States to reclaim lands within their limits," to Minnesota 
and Oregon, and for other purposes. 

Section 1. Be it enacted, &c. That the provisions of the 
act of Congress, entitled "An act to enable the State of 
Arkansas and other States to reclaim the swamp lands within 
their limits," approved September 28th, 1850, be and the same 
are hereby extended to the States of Minnesota and Oregon : 
Provided, that the grant hereby made shall not include any 
lands which the Government of the United States may have 
reserved, sold, or disposed of (in pursance of any law hereto- 
fore enacted) prior to the confirmation of title to be made 
under the authority of said act. 

Sec. 2. And be it further enacted, That the selections to be 
made from lands already surveyed in each of the States, 
including Minnesota aud Oregon, under the authority of the 
act aforesaid, and of the act to aid the State of Louisiana 
in draining the swamp lands therein, approved March 2d, 
1849, shall be made within two years from the adjournment 
of the legislature of each State at its next session after the 
date of this act, and as to all lands hereafter to be surveyed, 
within two years from such adjournment, at the next session 
after notice by the Secretary of the Interior to the Governor 
of the State that the surveys have been completed and con- 
firmed. 

Approved March 12th, I860. 



1 



29 



Department of tiie Interior, 

Washington, 1). C, 27th March, 1872. 

Sir: Your letter of the 18th iust. concerning swamp lands 
in Ohio, was received, and referred to the Commissioner of 
the General Land Office. A copy of his report on the sub- 
ject, under date of the 25th inst, is herewith inclosed. 
I am, Sir, 

Very respectfully, 

Tour ob't servant, 

C. DELANO, 

Secretary. 
Chas. J. Wetmore ? Esq., 

Auditor of State's Office, 

Columbus, Ohio. 



Department of the Interior, 

General Land Office 
Washington, D.;G, March 25th, 1872. 

Hon. C. Delano, Secretary of the Interior : 

Sir — I have the honor to acknowledge the receipt — by 
reference from you — of the communication from Chas J. 
Wetmore, Esq., of Columbus, Ohio, dated the 18th inst., 
relative to swamp lands in the State of Ohio. 

In reply, I have to state that an examination of our 
records shows that swamp-land selections, amounting to 

54.438.14 acres, were reported to this office as inuring to the 
State of Ohio, under the act of September 28, 1850 — selected 
and disposed of as follows; viz. : In 1850 a list of lands was 
reported as swanip selections inuring to the State, embracing 

32.438.15 acres, of which amount 25,640.71 acres were patented 
to the State as swamp lands, February 19, 1853, and the re- 
maining 6,797.44 acres were rejected by this office, for rea- 
sons stated in our letter to the State authorities, of date 
September 29th, 1852. 

In 1857 another list, embracing 21,999.99 acres, was re- 
ported as swamp-land selections, but no action was had 
thereon with a view to patenting as such, for the reason 

that the tracts embraced in said list, were found to be alter- 



' 



30 

nate sections, within the five mile limits of Canal grants, it 
having been decided by the Secretary of the Interior, by 
letter, dated November 20, 1855, that such alternate sections 
did not inure to the State under the Swamp grant. 

The above embrace all the swamp-land selections reported 
to this office as inuring to the State of Ohio, under the act 
of September 28, 1850, as shown by the records of this 
office. 
Mr. Wetmore's letter is herewith returned. 
I have the honor to be, 
Very respectfully, 

Your obt. servant, 

WILLIS DEUMMOND, 

Commissioner. 



} 



^ 



LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 







021 324 674_4 



